This rabbi extols the joy of experiencing an intimate connection
to the Almighty.

His core belief is that prayer should be deeply
felt, not just read. "The written material is freeze-dried
spirituality," he says. To demonstrate how meditation
deepens prayer, he closes his eyes, gently sways and slowly
utters "Baruch ... ata ...," the words that begin most
Jewish prayers. Kabbalah does more than reconnect Jews to God,
says Schachter-Shalomi. "My mind can't wrap itself around
what the soul knows." Ultimately, Kabbalah attunes them to
the world's deeper rhythms and meaningsthose that can't be
easily seen or measured, only felt. -read entire
article-

Tutu, author of "Apartheid in the Holy Land," Tan, who
wrote the international best-seller "Joy Luck Club,"
and Reed, former executive director of the powerful Christian
Coalition, are part of the Quaker school's effort to spark
discussion of faith traditions and issues involving religion that
affect everyday life.

The school plans to spend $300,000 on speakers and events --
including a series on science and religion and monthly
discussions in which the faculty and staff share their spiritual
and vocational journeys.

Various departments have also taken on the year's theme, with the
school's art gallery, for example, sponsoring the exhibit
"Thresholds: Expressions of Art and Spiritual Life."

At no time in history has dialogue been more important,
organizers say.

"Daily headlines scream out the need for civil, open
discussion on topics of spirit and spirituality," said Max
Carter, director of campus ministry at Guilford College.
"...With questions of whether we can allow Muslims to swear
on the Quran, what kind of religious impact a Supreme Court
nominee might have... if women, gays, lesbians -- fill in the
blanks -- can equally be the recipient of the outpouring of God's
spiritual gifts."

Other big-name speakers include: Karen Armstrong, a former nun
who wrote the tell-all book, "Through the Narrow Gate";
Robert Thurman, the first Westerner ordained a Tibetan Buddhist
monk and chairman of religious studies at Columbia University;
Bill Moyers, the award-winning broadcast journalist; and Julie
Butterfly Hill, the environmental activist who lived in a
California redwood tree for 738 days to prevent logging.

Don't overlook lesser-known names or discussions not held in the
larger venues, Carter said.

"If people attend only the 'big ticket' events, they'll miss
the richest part of the year," he said.

Lon Fendall, for example, is the former chief of staff for Sen.
Mark Hatfield and is an expert on peacemaking in the genocidal
areas of Africa.

Peter Blood and Annie Patterson are authors of the
internationally-acclaimed song book, "Rise up Singing."
Niyonu Spann, academic dean at Pendle Hill, the Quaker Center for
Study and Contemplation, is a member of the "Tribe One"
a cappella group, which promotes social justice through rhythmic
music and dance.

Each has a personal story of faith and spirit.

"Students and others are looking for a spiritual dimension
to their lives in an age of materialism, conflict and
self-centeredness," said Guilford College President Kent
Chabotar, who is Catholic. "They want a sense of moral
values whether or not they belong to that religion."

For example, the testimonies of the Society of Friends, the
Quakers, are spirituality, peace, integrity, community and
equality, Chabotar said. "Those are values that Protestants,
Muslims, Catholics and other religions can share."

The speakers and forums are not only on the college's campus, but
also at such local venues as War Memorial Auditorium and First
Presbyterian Church. The year's events also include concerts
featuring the Grammy-award winning Indigo Girls and gospel singer
Shirley Ceasar.

- Fab model seeks enlightenment', 'model turns Buddhist monk'
etc. has become the hot and happening news after the leading
newspapers and the popular youth magazines covered the change in
life-style of a famous 'ex-model' who recently turned into a
Buddhist monk.

The majority of the society believed, and still does, that monk,
priests, and other followers of different religious sects are the
people secluded from worldly atmosphere and living in a world
that has a different understanding of life. It is believed that
the only concern and way of life they follow is of complete
devotion to God or the Holy Spirit all the while meditating or
indulging in various rituals. However, Ani Choying Dolma, the
"Chinnalata-award-wining singer" for the super-duper
hit song 'phulko aankhama', has revolutionized the perception of
the society towards monks all for good reasons.

Her lives no longer depicts isolation but examples of social
action and spreading of messages of peace, integrity and love not
only through her words but with laudatory examples as well.

I understand, being a monk is a transformation; a form of
complete devotion and a commitment towards social justice and
humanity. However, I couldn't control my mind crossing the
horizons of wilderness and pondering as I overheard a
conversation between two girls in the micro. They were commenting
on the abovementioned 'ex-model' and referring to her change of
life-style as 'change of profession'. I am utterly confused.

Is being a monk a change of profession? Certainly not! But the
questions don't end there. After the much-publicized news of the
above-mentioned model-turned-monk, many of my friends have
expressed their desire to become a monk if they fail their exams
this time or aren't able to find a decent job soon.

It's true that the spiritual journey begins when we start getting
frustrated with the external world. We tend to go inside
ourselves when outside is not satisfying us. However, mere
incapability to cope with the worldly pressures can't be the sole
reason to be a monk per se. Besides, actions of such caliber
would be nothing else than a mere escape from the
responsibilities and pressures when the going gets tough.
Moreover, fending off social obligations and escaping from the
social responsibilities feigning the desire for enlightenment
would be a demeaning attitude.

According to the Buddhist philosophy, the source of enlightenment
is the zafu- the cushion where the devotee sits while meditating-
emphasizing that the source of salvation is within us. At this
point, I'd like to borrow the lines of Hermann Hesse from his
novel "Siddhartha" which reads -"If you meet the
Buddha, kill the Buddha" expressing that Buddha-meaning the
enlightened one- is within us and hence we need not search for it
outside us.

In reality "We are already enlightened, but we don't realize
it" and that can rightly be justified, pondered, analyzed
and realized as St. Aristotle philosophizes that "we often
have the courage to journey over mountains, deserts and oceans
yet we lack the courage to journey within ourselves."

Leaving her doctor's office, Cantor Nancy Ginsberg was relieved
that she would have just enough time to sing at a man's funeral
before she was admitted to the hospital.

He wasn't a relative or a lifelong friend. He wasn't even a
member of her synagogue, Har Sinai in Owings Mills, where she
sings as a cantor and leads the congregation in prayer. But his
daughter had called Ginsberg out of the blue one day a few months
earlier. She had been greatly impressed by Ginsberg at an event
and wanted to know if the cantor would visit her old and gravely
ill father.

After that first visit, Ginsberg called regularly to check up on
both father and daughter.

The news of his death arrived at the worst possible time -
Ginsberg was nine months pregnant and in labor. Between
contractions, she explained to the daughter why she wouldn't be
able to do the funeral and gave the woman the name of a rabbi she
should call for assistance.

The contractions, however, stopped. And when Ginsberg's doctor
scheduled her for a cesarean section later that week, she quickly
called the daughter to announce that she would sing at the
funeral after all.

So at 10 o'clock on a May morning, Ginsberg arrived at the Sol
Levinson & Bros. Funeral Home. She performed the service
"and then I said, 'I have to go have a baby now.'"

Michael - the miracle child she had hoped for after several
miscarriages - arrived at 4:17 p.m.

"I didn't have to think twice about doing that
funeral," Ginsberg said.

"That woman will never forget that, and I will never forget
that because I have touched her life, and she has touched
me."

It's those kinds of moments that convince Ginsberg she made the
right career choice.

You see, Ginsberg abandoned a blossoming career as an opera
singer in Italy and sidelined her passion for singing cabaret in
New York City to be a cantor.

"One of the reasons that I became a cantor is that it
allowed me to do so many more things than if I was an opera
singer or sang on Broadway.

Ancient nomads sat around the campfire, telling stories and
passing along oral traditions to the next generation.

Pioneers gathered their children at the hearth to read the Bible
and say prayers.And now, modern parents impart spiritual values
from the driver's seat of the minivan, as they transport
youngsters to school, sports and other activities.

"That's my quality time with my kids," said Cindy
Hammons, a mother of three in Tioga, Texas, about 50 miles north
of Dallas in Grayson County.

At home, laundry, cooking and other chores beckon. But in the
car, "you have the time to give them that conversation. You
know you have a set amount of time to talk with them."

Mimi Doe, an author and founder of the Web site
SpiritualParenting.com, said making good use of car time is a
must. "People are so frantic," she said. "Many
find the only time they're together is in the car, en route to
some activity."

The Rev. Jill Jackson-Sears, pastor of Inglewood United Methodist
Church in Grand Prairie, said she and her two young children like
to sing hymns together in the car  a tradition her toddler
initiated.

"We probably wouldn't do it any other place," she said.

Ms. Jackson-Sears spends two to three hours a day in the car,
shuttling between home, child care and her office.

According to a 2003 study by the U.S. Department of
Transportation, children 5 and younger spent an average of 65
minutes a day in the car. (Until that survey, the department kept
no such statistics for youngsters. That changed when experts
began to suspect that parents transporting kids were contributing
significantly to traffic congestion.)

And a University of Michigan study showed that while parents are
spending slightly more time with their kids than 20 years ago,
much of that additional time is in the car.

So some parents devise creative strategies for turning car time
into devotional time. -read
entire story-

It's a form of artwork with a long history in the Lakota culture.
Buffalo horn art can even be traced back to Crazy Horse. Despite
this, the practice of using buffalo horns to make art pieces had
nearly died out. But it is coming back, thanks to a man on the
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

Ever since he was a child, the 46-year old has had the skills to
carve. But he never pursued this passion. Instead, life became
hard.

Pourier said, "I didn't think I was going to live over 30
years old and so I road hard and partied hard and was into
everything that I could do, drugs and alcohol."

While living with friends in the late 1980's, Pourier saw
something that reminded him of his happy childhood. His friends
were carving.

Pourier said, "About a year later, I started carving deer
antler and then I switched to buffalo horn for some reason. The
shine of the buffalo horn was some much beautiful than the deer
antler."

And it was that shine that ended up lighting his way to a new
life. Through every intricate detail he carves, he is getting in
touch with his spirituality.

Pourier said, "The buffalo spirit lives in the horn cap. Our
work has spirit."

It's a spiritual journey and skill that's been a part of his
culture for hundreds of years.

Pourier said, "These are things that my ancestors made.
There's artist probably on every reservation that paint and draw
on buffalo hides. I know artist that make things out of buffalo
ribs and it's just carrying on that way of not wasting
anything."

His art helped him find peace in his life. The carvings began to
get noticed in the art world. He was even profiled in several
national magazines. The amount of time it takes Pourier to
complete each art piece varies. For a pair of earrings, it takes
him about day to make them. But when it comes to his buffalo
spoons, it takes nearly half year to make them.

Pourier said, "What I do is no one else does and that's
what's the coolest thing about this buffalo horn is that I'm
unclassifyable when I go to a show. I'm the only one there with
the type of art that I do."

Today, Pourier is a regular in the art scene, travelling across
the nation with his artwork.
His work always surprises people.

Pourier said, "For six to seven years, we had to educate
curators, judge after judge after judge, curators on what they
were looking at."

And Pourier has experienced a transformation himself. Just as
he's brought out the beauty in worn out buffalo horns, he has
also found the beauty in his own life.

Pourier said, "It has that spirit and I believe that's why
these good things have been happening because we treat our
material with respect. This is a carrying on of tradition and it
has a spirit. That's why we keep doing it."

Pourier is preparing for a large art show that will take place in
two weeks in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Then he's off to showcase his
buffalo horn art pieces at a show in New York City in September.

"Le Grand Voyage" is a road movie of an especially
refreshing and, finally, uplifting kind. A French/Moroccan film
by the young Moroccan writer-director Ismael Ferroukhi, making
his feature debut, it's about a journey to Mecca by Reda (Nicolas
Cazale), a young Frenchman of Moroccan descent, and his stern
traditionalist father (Mohamed Majd). Reda is a breezy,
leather-jacketed bound-for-college guy who's been pretty
Westernized, with a casual attitude and sometimes hedonistic
traits that rile his strict Muslim father. The conflicts begin
almost immediately.

Like most road films, this one--following the quarreling twosome
from France to Saudi Arabia--sets its protagonists against
picturesque backdrops and surrounds them with colorful characters
they meet in transit. And like many of the best, it becomes an
emotional and spiritual journey, particularly one of
reconciliation between warring generations, as well as a physical
one.

But "Voyage " is also notable for the way it depicts
Islamic culture and people, presenting what director Ferroukhi
calls "the other 97 percent." "I really wanted to
rehumanize a community with [its] reputation sullied by an
extreme minority, which uses the religion for political
ends," he says. Ferroukhi does put a human face on his
community and on his odd-couple father and son. His film, winner
of the best first feature prize at the Venice Film Festival, has
salty humor and warming compassion. (In French and Arabic with
English subtitles.)

- Fab model seeks enlightenment', 'model turns Buddhist monk'
etc. has become the hot and happening news after the leading
newspapers and the popular youth magazines covered the change in
life-style of a famous 'ex-model' who recently turned into a
Buddhist monk.

The majority of the society believed, and still does, that monk,
priests, and other followers of different religious sects are the
people secluded from worldly atmosphere and living in a world
that has a different understanding of life. It is believed that
the only concern and way of life they follow is of complete
devotion to God or the Holy Spirit all the while meditating or
indulging in various rituals. However, Ani Choying Dolma, the
"Chinnalata-award-wining singer" for the super-duper
hit song 'phulko aankhama', has revolutionized the perception of
the society towards monks all for good reasons.

Her lives no longer depicts isolation but examples of social
action and spreading of messages of peace, integrity and love not
only through her words but with laudatory examples as well.

I understand, being a monk is a transformation; a form of
complete devotion and a commitment towards social justice and
humanity. However, I couldn't control my mind crossing the
horizons of wilderness and pondering as I overheard a
conversation between two girls in the micro. They were commenting
on the abovementioned 'ex-model' and referring to her change of
life-style as 'change of profession'. I am utterly confused.

Is being a monk a change of profession? Certainly not! But the
questions don't end there. After the much-publicized news of the
above-mentioned model-turned-monk, many of my friends have
expressed their desire to become a monk if they fail their exams
this time or aren't able to find a decent job soon.

It's true that the spiritual journey begins when we start getting
frustrated with the external world. We tend to go inside
ourselves when outside is not satisfying us. However, mere
incapability to cope with the worldly pressures can't be the sole
reason to be a monk per se. Besides, actions of such caliber
would be nothing else than a mere escape from the
responsibilities and pressures when the going gets tough.
Moreover, fending off social obligations and escaping from the
social responsibilities feigning the desire for enlightenment
would be a demeaning attitude.

According to the Buddhist philosophy, the source of enlightenment
is the zafu- the cushion where the devotee sits while meditating-
emphasizing that the source of salvation is within us. At this
point, I'd like to borrow the lines of Hermann Hesse from his
novel "Siddhartha" which reads -"If you meet the
Buddha, kill the Buddha" expressing that Buddha-meaning the
enlightened one- is within us and hence we need not search for it
outside us.

In reality "We are already enlightened, but we don't realize
it" and that can rightly be justified, pondered, analyzed
and realized as St. Aristotle philosophizes that "we often
have the courage to journey over mountains, deserts and oceans
yet we lack the courage to journey within ourselves."

The times we live in are full of wealth and opportunities so
great that a king or queen of olden times could only have envied
them. Housing prices are shooting up to unbelievable highs all
over the world, creating millionaires out of ordinary folk.

On our computers, we can be in touch with people tens of
thousands miles away at the touch of a mouse. Modern agricultural
machinery helps yield such bumper crops that that the world is
awash in food. But do we feel richer? If anything, it is the pain
of loss that gnaws at people, rather than our feeling the
fullness of inward contentment. I would like to talk about the
five ways in which people most feel the sting of loss, and how
all of us can actively effect a remarkable spiritual
transformation of such deficits into strength that can build a
better world: -read
entire article-

ERIC WHITNEY: Time now for a book review. We've called on Ed
Quillen, columnist for the Denver Post and Co-Publisher of
Colorado Central magazine to select a work by a local author. His
pick: First Church of the Higher Elevations by Peter
Anderson.

ED QUILLEN: Mountains seem to inspire one of two human reactions.
One is greed, as in "how quickly can we mine, log, graze, or
subdivide this range." And the other is reverence, as in
Psalm 121, "I will lift mine eyes unto the hills, from
whence cometh my help."

In this collection of essays, Crestone writer and editor Peter
Anderson is blessedly free of greed, but his intense reverence
for mountains is often punctuated by everyday worldliness. For
instance, he plans a forty-day sojourn into the Henry Mountains
of Utah, but cuts it to thirty-six days because he wants to see
the NBA finals.

It's this sort of mixture of the supernal with the mundane that I
found most engaging in this baker's dozen of contemplative
pieces, all of them connected to spirituality and mountains. If
there were too much mundane, it would read like a guidebook. If
there were too much spirituality, it might read like a sermon, or
wander off into those new-age ethereal realms beyond the
comprehension of prosaic sorts like myself.

But Anderson finds the right balance. In First Church of the
Higher Elevations, he prays and fasts for thirty-six days in the
wilderness, works at an agricultural monastery, patronizes a
sweat lodge, befriends a priest fond of Yukon Jack whiskey, and
tracks down the history of "The Hermit" of Las Vegas,
New Mexico, who was reputed to be able to heal the sick. Anderson
explores realms beyond and within himself: "Why
solitude?" he asks. "It isn't about seeking any great
mystical insight or developing some out-of-the-ordinary
contemplative skill. It just helps me to listen for an interior
voice that is authentic and true and more likely to be found in
stillness than in the chaotic mix of voices I usually hear,
inwardly and outwardly, in the great flow of the day-to-day. It
gives me a chance to eddy out-to spend a little time in the
'still water' where reflection is possible. I don't think Jesus
walked into the desert because he expected to find God there; I
think he went into solitude so that he could hear more clearly
the Inward Teacher that dwells in all of us."

Anderson writes mostly from the Quaker tradition of individual
inspiration amid a community of fellow believers. But he also
draws on secular sources as he treks across the mountains of
Colorado and Utah. He cites John Muir, Jimi Hendrix, and B.B.
King. And he has a keen eye for the world around him: "As
the mid-day glare obscured the canyons out east of the range,
flies buzz through rising heat and winged grasshoppers crackle up
then crash in their jerky mate-seeking flight. Even now, in
mid-June, the sun is bright enough and strong enough to have me
longing for shelter and shade and a camp near running water. But
I have been looking for a while now, covering much of this alpine
basin without finding that place, and the prospects are beginning
to look a little grim."

Anderson is a fluid and graceful writer, but this book is not for
fast reading; these essays deserve time for contemplation. In
fact, this book just might be the perfect companion on the next
multi-day hike you take in order to get away from it all-and
ponder your own place in this world.

WHITNEY: You can read more book reviews by Ed Quillen and Martha
Quillen at www.cozine.com

In an effort to spark more meaningful thinking and active
listening among UC Davis community members, Chancellor Larry
Vanderhoef is promoting a new campuswide initiative titled
My Personal Compass.

For this project, students, faculty, staff and others affiliated
with the town and the campus are encouraged to think about what
truly matters to them in life  what is at their core
essence.

They are then asked to write a 350-word-maximum essay about their
thoughts. The essays can be on any philosophical, spiritual,
political or civic belief that a person feels strongly about.

With this project, we are hoping people will be more open
to presenting their own thoughts, said Maril Stratton,
assistant chancellor for communications, who is involved with the
project. We hope people will listen more keenly and
accurately to what others are saying.

Stratton said that the Chancellor anticipates the project will
also incite peoples thought processes and challenge them to
think about other perspectives.

This is not a contest to see who can write the best essay; it is
merely a project to get people thinking, writing and listening.
As such, there are no winners or losers.

All submitted essays will be posted on a special website created
for the initiative.

My Personal Compass is modeled after the National
Public Radio program I Believe. The NPR show
encourages people to think about a wide variety of subjects and
consider varying perspectives on the matter.

According to Stratton, the Chancellor feels very passionate about
this project.

The ideas of extending yourself and having new thoughts and
understandings have always been of great importance to him,
said Stratton. He likes people to learn to appreciate
differences.

Vanderhoef will officially announce the start of the My
Personal Compass initiative on Sept. 28 at the annual fall
convocation. He is hoping for some early essay submissions to
read as an example at the event.

This years convocations theme is Stretching
Boundaries of Thought and Experience, serving as an
opportunity for faculty, staff and community members to come
together to hear from the Chancellor and begin the academic year.

The event will take place at 11 a.m. in the Mondavi Centers
Jackson Hall.

Stratton said the My Personal Compass initiative ties
in well with this years theme.

Early bird essayists wishing to have their piece considered for
reading at the fall convocation can send their essays to
mypersonalcompass@ucdavis.edu by Sept. 6.

Hopefully a lot of people will be intrigued and inspired
and will take the time to write an essay, said Stratton.

Francis Ford Coppola is finally to produce a film of On The
Road, Jack Kerouac's Beat generation classic, 37 years after he
bought the movie rights.

A script is being prepared by Walter Salles and Jose Riviera, who
made The Motorcycle Diaries, a road film about the trip through
South America by the revolutionary Ernesto "Che"
Guevara in the early 1950s.

Kerouac's 1957 novel has a similar theme, the story of a
sleep-deprived, hitch-hiking journey across America.

The writer, who died at 47 with $91 in his bank account, depicted
himself as Sal Paradise, who links up with Dean Moriarty, a
fast-talking womaniser he idolises for his zest for life.

Billy Crudup is to play the Kerouac character, possibly with
Colin Farrell as Moriarty. But the roles of Carlo Marx, based on
Allen Ginsberg, and Old Bull Lee, the William Burroughs
character, are yet to be filled.

The original manuscript of the book, on a scroll 120ft long, was
sold at auction for $2.4 million. Coppola secured the film rights
in 1968 as a rising young director, before making The Godfather
and Apocalpyse Now.

He initially wanted to shoot it in black and white on 16mm film.
Michael Herr, who wrote the narration for Apocalypse Now, worked
on a screenplay.

Barry Gifford, who wrote Wild at Heart, tried to complete another
script.

Then Russell Banks, author of The Sweet Thereafter, said during a
visit to the Edinburgh festival that his screenplay had been
approved by the producer. But he later heard that Coppola changed
his mind.

With Salles aboard, the project finally looks ready for
production. The Brazilian-born director is seen as an ideal
choice for the picture. -read
entire story-

The art used in the projects -- a haunting scene of dark hues --
also carries a message of hope for those who are struggling. In
the midst of darkness, the bird can still soar high above the
shoreline's sands.

This is the story of an otherwise ordinary Michigan man, retired
Michigan State University agriculture professor Robert LaPrad,
whose amazing spiritual journey is marked by three shorelines.

I was virtually forced into meeting him. I walked into our
Detroit office last week to find one of his paintings blocking
access to my desk. As it turned out, one of LaPrad's friends had
-- without his knowledge -- delivered the painting, betting it
would make me want to write about him.

It was a perfect start to LaPrad's story, because he insists that
most people don't choose the experiences that shape their lives.
The important question, LaPrad told me when I drove up to his
Lansing home to return his painting, is how we behave when
confronted with an unexpected shore.

On June 6, 1944, LaPrad was an 18-year-old Detroiter, drafted
into the Army and caught up in a stomach-turning ride toward
Omaha Beach, the horrific D-Day scene depicted in "Saving
Private Ryan."

"That movie is about as close to what happened as we're
likely to see," LaPrad told me. "We lost two-thirds of
our company. It was so bad that most of us who survived didn't
talk about it for 50 years."

Slowly, he lifted the lid off a box containing the Silver Star he
was awarded for his decision that day to leave relative safety on
the beach to save the life of a wounded man who was drowning in
the churning waves.

"But, in France, I drank a lot," LaPrad told me.
"We'd use a machine gun, blow holes in kegs of wine and fill
up."

Alcoholism, a disorder that runs in LaPrad's family, is the force
that eventually pushed him to other shores. -read
entire article-

Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur's autobiography, Rasa
Yatra: My Journey in Music, is important not only
because it tells us the musical journey of a genius, but also
because it contains comments on other musical stalwarts that
could act as the catalyst for a mature debate towards a
non-hagiographical understanding of music and musicians.
...
After the formal initiation ceremony, Ustad Manji Khan Saheb
taught Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur to sing raga Bhimpalas. In many
ways, this rendition "marked" Mansur for life. It set a
standard that went beyond the technical nuances of rendering a
raga. "Each note beckoned the next note with open arms and
one merged into the other", says Pandit Mansur, invoking a
deeply sensuous imagery. What was so distinctive about Manji Khan
Saheb's singing was the total fusion of "breath and
music", to the extent that there was little distinction
between the two. Listening to his guru, he realised that
"deep within the conscience of an artiste, music has no
beginning and no end". The movement of melody, he says, is
within the "being" of a singer. In other words,
limitations of the body had been transcended and the fusion of
breath and music had conspired to create supreme joy.

Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur's autobiography is full of such
insights. The Great Master of the Jaipur gharana style of singing
was also a deeply thoughtful man. While his autobiography,
admirably translated by his son and musical heir, Pandit
Rajshekhar Mansur, is titled Rasa Yatra, it is also Pandit
Mansur's adhyaatma yatra or spiritual journey. Music and
spirituality run like parallel streams in his narrative. He
invokes the memory of spiritual mentors with the same devotion as
he speaks of his gurus. Therefore, the Arabavi Mahanta
Shivayogi's exhortation that total surrender was the highest form
of worship became an article of faith in life as well as for
music. -read
entire article-

ROCKLAND (Aug 2): Rockland artist Phil Schirmer will present a
collection of new paintings in egg tempera at the Nan Mulford
Gallery, 313 Main Street, opening Wednesday, Aug. 10. The exhibit
will extend through Sunday, Sept. 11. An artists reception,
to which the public is cordially invited, will be held 57
p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 10.

Schirmer has painted in egg tempera, an ancient and painstaking
technique, for 25 years. He teaches the technique at the
Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland, and his work is widely and
enthusiastically collected. Because of the time-consuming nature
of the medium, his output is limited; his last show at the Nan
Mulford Gallery was two summers ago.

The egg tempera technique, characterized by a subdued luminosity
and a sense of enduring calm, is particularly appropriate to
Schirmers subjects, the granite ledges, evergreens, stone
walls, and weathered structures of the Maine coastline. The
paintings possess a profound yet elusive spirituality.

The 10 paintings in the exhibit include Right Now, the portrait
of a magnificent evergreen whose monumentality is seen primarily
in the shadow it casts across an empty field. Another painting,
Boss, is a larger-than-life-size homage to a fully realized
herring gull, complete with attitude. A third painting shows a
beached boat mooring with Rockports Indian Island light in
the background. Several more are studies of granite rocks or
beach stones. Rebel presents a flourishing tree growing
triumphantly from a stone breakwater.

The exhibit may be previewed on the gallery website,
nanmulfordgallery.com. Also on view at the Nan Mulford Gallery is
the work of more than 40 artists in all media.

Gallery hours are Monday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 5
p.m., Sunday, 125 p.m. The gallery is also open Wednesdays
until 8 p.m. For further information, contact the gallery at
594-8481.